Cancer is a disease with abnormal cell growth, cells begin to multiply endlessly. This has the potential to spread to other parts of the body.
There are many cancer treatments and they are associated with risk factors. However, most cancer treatments have advanced to deliver excellent success rates. Hence, one must weigh the risks of treatment against the benefits they deliver. Largely, risks and after effects of cancer treatment are short term. Most patients return to normal activities at the end of treatment.
The major treatments for cancer are:
· surgery
· chemotherapy and targeted therapy
· radiotherapy
· palliative care (pain management)
The types of treatment for cancer depend mainly on what type of cancer it is, how advanced it is, or what stage it. Usually, cancers detected in earlier stages have lighter treatment with less after effects, compared to cancers detected late.
Risk factors of cancer surgery
There are risk factors, complications, and side effects due to cancer surgery. The more complex the surgery is the greater the risk of side effects.
Pain– This is the common risk factor for almost all surgeries. It can be treated by medications prescribed by a doctor. This is a short term after effect only. Most patients find relief within hours of medication.
Infection– It’s a common potential risk factor after surgery, which delays healing, can increase scarring, and longer recovery of the patient. Infection can be controlled and prevented. Skin acts as a body barrier and helps in protecting the body from bacterial and viral infections. So carefully and gently dressing the wound will help in preventing infections.
Bleeding: Many factors contribute to bleeding or blood loss, haemodilution(decreased concentration of cells and solids in the blood resulting from a gain of fluid), coagulation factor disorder (clotting factor disorder). Bleeding can be controlled by applying pressure, dressings, and packing. Expect some bleeding at each surgery, but your doctor will prepare for this and teach you to handle any unusual bleeding after your discharge.
Loss of organ function: To cure cancer the surgeon may need to remove an entire organ. For example nephrectomy (surgical removal of kidney) has to be done in case of kidney cancer. In cases where vital organs are removed e.g. kidney, stomach, lung etc. the patient has to undergo major lifestyle changes. However, cases where organs such as breast, prostate, reproductive organs are removed, the impact on day to day life is minimal. Most patients resume normal life few months after surgery.
Risk factors due to chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is one of the most commonly used treatment methods to cure cancer. It can be used along with the other treatment methods namely radiation therapy or cancer surgery to improve the quality of cancer treatment.
Chemotherapy uses many drugs called chemo drugs to fight against cancer cells. Chemo drugs work by killing the rapidly multiplying cancer cells. Unfortunately, it won’t destroy only cancer cells, it also destroys healthy cells which divide rapidly. This is what causes common chemo side effects such as hair loss, weight loss etc. Usually these side effects are temporary, patients will return to normal once the chemotherapy is completed.
Pain
Damage to the nerves during chemotherapy may cause pain. Patients who are undergoing chemotherapy may experience headaches and stomach aches.
The patient undergoing chemo treatment may also experience nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, and constipation.
These are all common and preventable. Work with your doctor to manage your medications to prevent these side effects.
Risk factors due to radiation therapy
itThis is a type of cancer treatment that uses radiation to destroy cancer.
In this treatment gamma rays and x-rays are used. Due to their effective treatment it is most commonly used.
Some risk factors are based on the location of the treatment. example when radiation therapy
is given on the head and neck region, it may cause
Ø Loss of hair on the head
Ø Nausea
Ø Development of sores on mouth gums
Ø Dryness of mouth
Ø Cavity
When radiation therapy on the Stomach
Ø Vomiting
Ø Nausea
Ø Diarrhea
When radiation therapy on the Chest
Ø The fullness of the chest
Ø development of sores in breast
Ø fatigue
Ø radiation fibrosis(scar tissue that forms due to damage to cells caused by radiation therapy)
Ø radiation pneumonitis(inflammation of the lung)
When men undergo radiation therapy may cause
Ø Decreased sperm count and activity
Ø Frequent and painful urination
Ø Rectal bleeding
When women undergo radiation therapy may cause
Ø Changes in the menstrual cycle
Ø Vaginal burning
Ø Early menopause
Most side effects are short term and far outweigh the benefits of radiation therapy. Globally, this form of therapy is being used widely to improve outcomes.
While cancer treatment helps in curing cancer it also has risk factors as mentioned above, hence curing cancer along with minimal risk factors should be considered. Discuss your treatment plan with your doctor at the start. You can choose treatments that may have lighter side effects. You doctor will be able to guide you.
If you know anyone who needs help with cancer, you can refer them to Dcode Care. This is a cancer support organization that helps patients avail affordable latest advanced medical treatment for cancer.
If you need to undergo treatments which are effective but come with more side effects, prepare a plan to manage side effects from home. The majority of side effects can be treated with simple medication so patients need to change to inferior lines of cancer treatment.
